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Go nutty
Nutmegs (Myristica) are a genus of evergreen trees indigenous to tropical Southeast Asia and Australasia.
They are important for two spices derived from the fruit, nutmeg and mace. Nutmeg is the actual seed of the tree, roughly egg-shaped.
The most important species commercially is the Common or Fragrant Nutmeg Myristica fragrans, native to the Banda Islands of Indonesia; it is also grown in the Caribbean, especially in Grenada.
The fruit of the nutmeg tree is fleshy like an apricot and about 2-4 inches in length. Upon ripening, it splits in half, exposing a bright-red, netlike aril wrapped around a dark reddish-brown and brittle shell within which lies a single seed.
The net-like aril is mace, which on drying turns from red to yellowish or orange brown. The dried brown seed, after the shell is broken and discarded, is nutmeg.
Medicinal uses
The oil is used for rheumatic pain and, like clove oil, can be applied as an emergency treatment to dull toothache. In France, it is given in drop doses in honey for digestive upsets and used for bad breath. Oil mixed with sugar and honey is used to control chronic diarrohea. It is used to treat gas, indigestion, nausea, vomiting and other stomach as well as kidney problems.
Culinary uses
In Indian cuisine, nutmeg is used almost exclusively in sweets and is known as jaiphal. It is also used in small quantities in garam masala. In European cuisine, nutmeg and mace are used especially in potato dishes and in processed meat products; they are also used in soups, sauces and baked goods. Recipe.
Sautéed vegetables with nutmeg and tomato
Ingredients
Peppers: 25 gm
Zuccuni: 25 gm
Broccoli: 25 gm
Baby corn: 25 gm
Asparagus: 25 gm
Roasted nutmeg powder:
50 gm
Tomato, chopped: 100gm
Salt to taste
Pepper powder to taste
Dry gin: 25 ml Shallots: 25
gm Chopped garlic: 20 gm
Butter/Olive oil: 25 ml
Method: Parboil the vegetables with a pinch of salt in a pan, heat butter/olive oil, add chopped garlic and shallots. Sauté them well and add vegetables and gin. Then add chopped tomatoes without seeds and mix well.
Check for seasoning by adding salt and pepper. Finish with nutmeg powder and butter.
RISHI MANUCHA
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